3 Leaf Tower with Central Wind Turbine
by Lloyd Alter, Toronto on 03. 1.07
The UK's Marks Barfield Architects, famous for the London Eye, now propose the Skyhouse, "a fresh look at residential tower high-rise in response to London’s current housing crisis. The challenge of how to develop high density housing that people want to live in and that is sustainable."
The three leaf design channels wind into the center of the complex, where what looks like vertical axis wind turbine up the center of the building generates electricity to power all of the common areas.
"A single Skyhouse development could provide between 240-500 homes with concierges for added security and convenience, and to actively promote a sense of community. Communal recreation spaces are incorporated into the tower to enhance the quality of life and community spirit and include skygardens, skypools, gyms and creches" .[nurseries] ::Marks Barfield Architects via ::architectnophilia
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I really like the idea, especially with a sane approach to communal spaces and using ambient energy... But I'm attached to having a garage -- if I don't use it for working on my car (which might not be necessary in such a dense environment), I'll certainly use it for building other stuff - furinture, electronics, and just general handyman stuff!
Are there any high-density housing ideas that would work for a person like me?
Anon: Well, an idea that I'd really like is a communal workshop. I also do a lot of home projects (furniture, woodworking, etc.) and have found it very difficult to do in an urban residence. I know that community workshops exist, but I haven't seen many of them. I think such an amenity would be a draw.
Many new buildings offer storage spaces in their basements for tenants. These could be located in close proximity to a workshop to allow you to secure projects that are underway.
I think that an auto workshop would probably not be very possible due to space and liability issues. Plus, avoiding cars and garages is one of the things that makes these sorts of developments sustainable. Considering that such a tower would be in an urban setting cars and garages would probably not be included.
I think a 6 storey density like Paris would be just as dense but much more pleasing and no need for banks of elevators and heavy steel and concrete construction.
I agree with Steve. And with lower, dense housing, you'd run into people on the street and that would be your community. A number of new condo developments in my city have included gyms, and I doubt they provide much community. For one, they would never have as many people as a public gym. Also, it locks you into socializing within your building, instead of the community at large. In that case, the gyms might be considered anti-social.